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Swilland Moon & Mushroom
Swilland Moon & Mushroom
formerly Half Moon
South East, 52.12601,1.19113
Real Ale is sold here.
High Rd, IP6 9LR
grid reference TM 185 523
traditional bar & dinner, opened 1620 or earlier
A comfortable and cosy single bar pub, nicely decorated throughout with local pictures, tiled floor and scrubbed tables. A wide range of beers on gravity is always available from the tap room and home-cooked food is is served both in the bar and an adjoining dining room. The menu offers all home cooked food including some game dishes. There's occasional live music (on Sundays) and special themed nights.
Outdoor seating is also available to the front and side of the pub, including a small heated area for smokers. There's also a rose garden.
There's a toilet for disabled customers.
The pub won best country / village pub two years running.
There's been an inn on this site since at least 1620, when it was a coaching inn.
At one time when the Ipswich and East Suffolk branch of Camra held a meeting here, the editor of What's Brewing misunderstood the details, so the magazine announced a meeting at the Swill and Half Moon.
Facilities
Accessible to disabled customers
Beer garden or other outside drinking area
Beer served direct from the barrel by gravity
Dogs welcome
Evening meals
Family friendly
Lunchtime meals (not just snacks)
Parking
Real fire
Restaurant or separate dining area
Separate bar
Smoking area
WiFi available: Free, ask at bar for key
Railway station about 3.5 miles away (see transport links for details)
Gallery
Nearest railway station
Other nearby Suffolk pubs
Historical interest
The pub is shown on this old OS map from about 1902 (interactive map)
Steve Podd reports: Originally a Cobbold beer house (tithe map – landlord Robert Stagg). It is shown as the Half Moon on a farm map of 1809.
The pub was owned by Tolly Cobbold until 1992. It was renamed the Moon & Mushroom in 1996. The name came about because the new owners wanted to mark the change of ownership and they were keen hunters of wild fungi.
One previous landlord was transported to Australia for stealing a pig and two ducks.
Yesterday se'nnight a fire broke out at the Half Moon, Swilland (occasioned by some sparks falling on the thatch) which consumed part of the house & most of the furniture before it was extinguished (No landlord mentioned).Bury & Norwich Post, April 15th 1801**
Landlords
(Most pub, location & historic details collated by Nigel, Tony or Keith - original sources are credited)
(some old PO directory information courtesy of londonpublichouse.com)
(** historic newspaper information from Bob Mitchell)
